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The protracted healthcare turmoil has increased the average wait for surgery for patients with the seven major cancers by more than five days, and the share of patients whose surgeries were delayed by more than a month has reached nearly 50 percent, according to data. Notably, the number of cancer surgery patients at the Big Five hospitals has dropped by nearly half.
Against this backdrop, a bill has been proposed to investigate the damage patients have suffered due to the ongoing medical crisis.
Waiting times for cancer patients to undergo surgery have increased sharply due to protracted healthcare turmoil. (Credit: Getty Images)
Waiting times for cancer patients to undergo surgery have increased sharply due to protracted healthcare turmoil. (Credit: Getty Images)
Rep. Kim Yoon of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) introduced the amendment bill to the Basic Health and Medical Act on Monday, which includes the above-mentioned contents.
The amendment defined the current situation as a “national healthcare crisis” in which serious harm to the public's health is or may be caused by nationwide medical service interruptions, infectious disease epidemics, large-scale disasters, and other reasons.
It required the Ministry of Health and Welfare to survey patient damage caused by such crisis situations and establish and implement countermeasures accordingly.
The newly defined national healthcare crises include a public health crisis situation under the Crisis Response Medical Products Act when the Minister of Health and Welfare issues a crisis warning, nationwide disruption of medical services, and interruption of drug supply; a situation where it is difficult to receive normal healthcare services due to a large-scale blood supply shortage; and a situation where serious harm to public health occurs or is feared due to external environmental factors.
Rep. Kim pointed out that the government's policy of increasing the number of medical school students is causing great harm to patients, including delays in cancer surgeries. Still, the government is taking a hands-off approach to working out countermeasures.
According to Kim's analysis of the waiting period from diagnosis to surgery for seven major cancers—stomach, colon, breast, cervix, lung, pancreas, and head and neck—based on data submitted by the National Health Insurance Service, the number of cancer surgery patients last year was 25,680, down 7.3 percent, or 2,022, from the previous year. The average wait time increased by 5.3 days, from 37.9 to 43.2 days.
Notably, the share of patients with delays of 31 days or more increased by 8.9 percentage points, from 40.7 percent in 2023 to 49.6 percent in 2024.
By type of hospital, the number of cancer surgery patients at tertiary hospitals plummeted by 4,271 (20.3 percent) from 21,013 to 16,742 over the same period, with the average waiting time increasing by 6.2 days from 40.2 days to 46.4 days. The number of cancer surgery patients at the Big Five hospitals dropped by more than half. From 8,248 in 2023 to 4,006 in 2024, a 51.4 percent drop. The average waiting period increased by 4.5 days, from 46.4 to 50.9 days.
On the other hand, the number of cancer surgery patients in general hospitals and hospitals increased significantly, also increasing the waiting period.
The number of cancer surgery patients in general hospitals increased by 32.6 percent, or 2,079, from 6,374 in 2023 to 8,453 in 2024, and the average wait time increased by 6.6 days, from 31.5 days to 38.1 days. The number of cancer surgery patients at the hospital increased by 54.0 percent, or 128, from 237 to 365 during the same period, and the average waiting time increased by 2.0 days, from 16.8 to 18.7 days.
Citing a study by Professor Yun Young-ho of the Department of Family Medicine at Seoul National University, Rep. Kim pointed out that the mortality rate could be higher in a medical crisis situation when the number of cancer surgery patients at tertiary hospitals decreases and the waiting period increases by more than a month. The study found that survival rates for major cancers dropped when surgery was delayed by more than a month at hospitals with fewer surgeries, with breast cancer patients more than doubling their risk of death.
“Despite the clear damage to patients due to the healthcare void, such as delayed surgeries for cancer patients and an increase in emergency room rush, the government is in a hurry to cover up the problem rather than take measures through a survey,” Kim said. “We need the Patient Damage Survey Act to scrutinize the damage caused to the public by the rushed medical school expansion policy and take fundamental measures to prevent such tragedies from being repeated.”
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